Information processing apparatus, control method of information processing apparatus, and storage medium

ABSTRACT

On a user interface screen for a user to set a rule relating to property information used for filing a document image and distributing the document image into a folder, at least a first area for editing the rule, a second area displaying a plurality of items selectable by a user, and a third area displaying an image of a sample document are provided. Then, in a case where a particular item being displayed in the second area is activated by a mouse hover, a character area in the image of the sample document being displayed in the third area is highlighted, which corresponds to the particular item activated by the mouse hover.

BACKGROUND Field

The present disclosure relates to a technique to set a rule at the timeof distributing a file in a folder.

Description of the Related Art

Conventionally, in an information processing apparatus, such as an MFP(Multifunction Peripheral), a method is utilized widely, which files(computerizes) image data obtained by scanning a document, received dataof a facsimile or the like and stores it in a storage server on anetwork by transmitting it thereto. Then, at the time of storing fileddata, automatic distribution of filed data in a folder is alsoperformed. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2021-140328 hasdisclosed a technique to perform generation of a file name automaticallyin accordance with a file naming rule that is set in advance. Here, itis assumed that a file naming rule is set, which specifies to connect“document type” and “company name” with “underscore”, in the techniqueof Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2021-140328. In this case, on acondition that a character string of “Estimate Form” representing“document type” and a character string of “AA Company” representing“company name” are extracted from image data obtained by scanning anestimate form, “Estimate Form_AA Company” is generated as a file name.

Generally, in a business form, such as an estimate form and a bill, aplurality of document numbers and amounts may be included. Here, it isassumed that a user desires to set a file naming rule using attributes,such as “document number” and “amount”, by using the technique ofJapanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2021-140328 described above. In this case,a user has trouble determining whether “document number” and “amount”supposed by the user him/herself are automatically extractedappropriately. Further, in a case where an engineer or the like sets afile naming rule in place of a user, on a condition that the engineer orthe like is not well versed in the business contents of the user(client), it is difficult to select an appropriate attribute by relyingon only technical terminology, for example, such as medical terms andlegal terms.

SUMMARY

An object of the technique of the present disclosure is to make itpossible for a user to set a folder distribution rule and a file namingrule more simply at the time of filing and storing data of a scannedimage of a document, a received facsimile and the like.

The information processing apparatus according to the present disclosureis an information processing apparatus including: one or more memoriesstoring instructions; and one or more processors executing theinstructions to: perform display control of a rule setting screen for auser to set a rule relating to property information used fordistributing a file of a document image into a folder, wherein on therule setting screen, at least a first area for editing the rule, asecond area displaying a plurality of items selectable by a user, and athird area displaying an image of a sample document exist, each of theplurality of items is an element for a user to set a character stringconfiguring the property information, the plurality of items includes: ageneral item corresponding to a character string with a predeterminedattribute; and a particular item for automatically extracting acharacter string from the document image, which corresponds to anattribute that a user can set arbitrarily, the rule is created by atleast one item selected from the second area by a user being arranged ata predetermined position in the first area, which is designated by theuser, and in the display control, in a case where the particular itembeing displayed in the second area is activated by a mouse hover, acharacter area in the image of the sample document being displayed inthe third area is highlighted, which correspond to the particular itemactivated by the mouse hover.

Further features of the present disclosure will become apparent from thefollowing description of exemplary embodiments with reference to theattached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a general configuration of an imageprocessing system;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of an MFP;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of an MFPcooperative server and a storage server;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a software configuration of the imageprocessing system;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a scan template list screen;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a folder distribution rulesetting screen;

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a folder distribution rulesetting screen;

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a folder distribution rulesetting screen;

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a folder distribution rulesetting screen;

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a folder distribution rulesetting screen;

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of a folder distribution rulesetting screen;

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a folder distribution rulesetting screen;

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a folder distribution rulesetting screen;

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a folder distribution rulecheck screen;

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of a file naming rule settingscreen;

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a property setting screen;

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing details of property setting screendisplay processing; and

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing details of the property setting screendisplay processing.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, with reference to the attached drawings, the presentdisclosure is explained in detail in accordance with preferredembodiments. Configurations shown in the following embodiments aremerely exemplary and the present disclosure is not limited to theconfigurations shown schematically.

System Configuration First Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the general configuration of an informationprocessing system according to the present embodiment. The informationprocessing system includes an MFP (Multifunction Peripheral) 110, aclient PC 111, and server apparatuses 120 and 130 that provide cloudservices on the internet. The MFP 110 and the client PC 111 areconnected so as to be capable of communicating with various devices thatprovide various services on the internet via a LAN (Local Area Network).

The MFP 110 is an example of an information processing apparatus havingthe scan function. The MFP 110 is a multifunction peripheral having aplurality of functions, such as the print function and the BOX storefunction, in addition to the scan function. The client PC 111 is aninformation processing apparatus, such as a desktop terminal and amobile terminal, capable of receiving the provision of cloud servicesvia the internet. Both the server apparatuses 120 and 130 are each aninformation processing apparatus providing cloud services. The serverapparatus 120 of the present embodiment provides cloud services toperform an image analysis for a scanned image received from the MFP 110,transfer a request from the MFP 110 to the server apparatus 130providing other services, and so on. In the following, the cloud serviceprovided by the server apparatus 120 is called “MFP cooperativeservice”. The server apparatus 130 provides cloud services (in thefollowing, called “storage services”) to store file data that is sentvia the internet in a predetermined folder, provide a stored file inresponse to a request from a web browser of the client PC 111, and soon. In the present embodiment, the server apparatus 120 that providesthe MFP cooperative service is called “MFP cooperative server” and theserver apparatus 130 that provides the storage service is called“storage server”.

The information processing system of the present embodiment has theconfiguration including the MFP 110, the client PC 111, the MFPcooperative server 120, and the storage server 130, but theconfiguration is not limited to this. For example, the MFP 110 may alsoplay the role of the client PC 111 and the MFP cooperative server 120.Further, the MFP cooperative server 120 may be arranged on the LAN inplace of on the internet. Furthermore, the storage server 130 may bereplaced with a mail server or the like and applied to a scene in whicha scanned image of a document is transmitted by being attached to amail.

Hardware Configuration of MFP 110

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the MFP110. The MFP 110 includes a control unit 210, an operation unit 220, aprinter 221, a scanner 222, and a modem 223. The control unit 210includes each of units 211 to 219 below and controls the operation ofthe entire MFP 110. The CUP 211 reads and executes control programs(programs corresponding to various functions shown in a softwareconfiguration diagram, to be described later) stored in the ROM 212. TheRAM 213 is used as a temporary storage area, such as a main memory and awork area, of the CPU 211. In the present embodiment, the one CPU 211performs each piece of processing shown in flowcharts, to be describedlater, by using the one memory (RAM 213 or HDD 214), but the presentembodiment is not limited to this. For example, it may also be possibleto perform each piece of processing by causing a plurality of CPUs and aplurality of RAMs or HDDs to cooperate with one another.

The HDD 214 is a large-capacity storage unit configured to store imagedata and various programs. The operation unit I/F 215 is an interfacethat connects the operation unit 220 and the control unit 210. Theoperation unit 220 comprises a touch panel, a keyboard and the like andreceives operations/inputs/instructions by a user. The touch operationto the touch panel includes the operation with a human finger and theoperation with a touch pen. The printer I/F 216 is an interface thatconnects the printer 221 and the control unit 210. Image data to beprinted is transferred from the control unit 210 to the printer 221 viathe printer I/F 216 and printed on a printing medium.

The scanner I/F 217 is an interface that connects the scanner 222 andthe control unit 210. The scanner 222 generates scanned image data byoptically reading a document that is set on a document table or ADF(Auto Document Feeder), not shown schematically, and inputs the scannedimage data to the control unit 210 via the scanner I/F 217. It ispossible to print (copy and output) the scanned image data generated bythe scanner 222 in the printer 221, store the data in the HDD 214,transmit the data to an external apparatus, such as the MFP cooperativeserver 120, as a file or a mail via a LAN, and so on. The modem I/F 218is an interface that connects the modem 223 and the control unit 210.The modem 223 performs facsimile communication of image data with afacsimile device (not shown schematically) on the PSTN. The network I/F219 is an interface that connects the control unit 210 (MFP 110) to aLAN. The MFP 110 transmits image data and information to each service onthe internet, receives various kinds of information, and so on, by usingthe network I/F 219. The hardware configuration of the MFP 110 explainedabove is an example and the hardware configuration may be one thatcomprises another configuration as needed or may be one that does nothave part of the configuration.

Hardware Configuration of Client PC and Server Apparatus

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of theclient PC 111, the MFP cooperative server 120, and the storage server130. The client PC 111, the MFP cooperative server 120, and the storageserver 130 include a CPU 311, a ROM 312, a RAM 313, an HDD 314, and anetwork I/F 315. The CPU 311 controls the entire operation by readingcontrol programs stored in the ROM 312 and performing various kinds ofprocessing. The RAM 313 is used as a temporary storage area, such as amain memory and a work area, of the CPU 311. The HDD 314 is alarge-capacity storage unit configured to store image data and variousprograms. The network I/F 315 is an interface that connects the clientPC 111/the MFP cooperative server 120/the storage server 130 to theinternet. The MFP cooperative server 120 and the storage server 130receive requests for various kinds of processing from other apparatuses(MFP 110, client PC 111 and the like) via the network I/F 315 and returnprocessing results in accordance with the requests.

Software Configuration of Information Processing System

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the software configuration of theinformation processing system according to the present embodiment. Inthe following, the software configuration corresponding to the role ofeach of the MFP 110, the MFP cooperative server 120, and the storageserver 130 is explained in order. In the following, explanation is givenby narrowing the various functions of each apparatus to the functionsrelating to the processing from filing a scanned image obtained byscanning a document in the MFP 110 until storing it in the storageserver 130 via the MFP cooperative server 120.

Software Configuration of MFP

The function modules of the MFP 110 are roughly divided into twomodules, that is, a native function module 410 and an additionalfunction module 420. While the native function module 410 is anapplication provided as a standard one in the MFP 110, the additionalfunction module 420 is an application that is installed additionally inthe MFP 110. The additional function unit 420 is an application based onJava (registered trademark) and it is possible to easily implement theaddition of a function to the MFP 110. In the MFP 110, anotheradditional application, not shown schematically, may be installed.

The native function module 410 has a scan execution unit 411 and ascanned image management unit 412. Further, the additional functionmodule 420 has a display control unit 421, a scan control unit 422, acooperative service request unit 423, and an image processing unit 424.

The display control unit 421 displays a user interface screen (UIscreen) for receiving various user operations on a touch panel of theoperation unit 220. The various user operations include, for example,input of login authentication information for accessing the MFPcooperative server 120, scan setting, setting of a rule relating tofolder distribution and file naming, giving instructions to start ascan, giving instructions to store a file and the like.

The scan control unit 422 gives instructions to perform scan processingto the scan execution unit 411 along with scan setting information inaccordance with the user operation (for example, pressing down of “Startscan” button) performed on the UI screen. The scan execution unit 411causes the scanner unit 240 to perform the document reading operationvia the scanner I/F 217 and generates scanned image data in accordancewith the instructions to perform scan processing from the scan controlunit 422. The generated scanned image data is stored in the HDD 214 bythe scanned image management unit 412. At this time, the scan controlunit 422 is notified of information on a scanned image identifieruniquely indicating the stored scanned image data. The scanned imageidentifier is a number, symbol, alphabetical letter and the like foruniquely identifying the image scanned in the MFP 110. The scan controlunit 422 obtains, for example, the scanned image data that is the targetto be filed from the scanned image management unit 412 by using theabove-described scanned image identifier. Then, the scan control unit422 instructs the cooperative service request unit 423 to make a requestfor processing necessary to file the scanned image data to the MFPcooperative server 120.

The cooperative service request unit 423 makes requests for variouskinds of processing to the MFP cooperative server 120, receivesresponses thereto, and so on. The various kinds of processing include,for example, login authentication, scanned image analysis, transmissionof scanned image data and the like. For transmission and reception withthe MFP cooperative server 120, the communication protocol, such as RESTand SOAP, is used.

The image processing unit 424 generates an image that is used on the UIscreen displayed by the display control unit 421 by performingpredetermined image processing for the scanned image data.

Software Configuration of Server Apparatus

First, the software configuration of the MFP cooperative server 120 isexplained. The MFP cooperative server 120 has a request control unit431, an image processing unit 432, a storage server access unit 433, adata management unit 434, and a display control unit 435. The requestcontrol unit 431 stands by in the state of being capable of receiving arequest from an external apparatus and instructs the image processingunit 432, the storage server access unit 433, and the data managementunit 434 to perform predetermined processing in accordance with receivedrequest contents. The image processing unit 432 performs imagemodification processing, such as rotation and inclination correction, inaddition to image analysis processing, such as character area detectionprocessing, character recognition processing, and similar documentdetermination processing, for the scanned image data that is sent fromthe MFP 110. The storage server access unit 433 makes a request forprocessing to the storage server 130. The cloud service has made publica variety of interfaces for storing a file in the storage server,obtaining a stored file, and so on by using the protocol, such as RESTand SOAP. The storage server access unit 433 makes a request to thestorage server 130 by using an interface made public. The datamanagement unit 434 stores and manages user information, various kindsof setting data and the like, which are managed in the MFP cooperativeserver 120. The display control unit 435 receives a request from a webbrowser running on the MFP 110 or the client PC 111 connected via theinternet and returns screen configuration information (HTML, CSS and thelike) necessary for the screen display. It is possible for a user tocheck the registered user information, change the scan setting and therule setting relating to folder distribution and file naming via thescreen that is displayed on the web browser.

Next, the software configuration of the storage server 130 is explained.The storage server 130 has a request control unit 441, a filearrangement unit 442, and a display control unit 443. The requestcontrol unit 441 stands by in the state of being capable of receiving arequest from an external apparatus and in the present embodiment, therequest control unit 441 instructs the file arrangement unit 442 tostore a received file and read a stored file in response to a requestfrom the MFP cooperative server 120. Then, the request control unit 441returns a response in accordance with the request to the MFP cooperativeserver 120. The display control unit 443 receives a request from a webbrowser running on the MFP 110 or the client PC 111 connected via theinternet and returns screen configuration information (HTML, CSS and thelike) necessary for the screen display. It is possible for a user tocheck, obtain, and so on a stored file via the screen that is displayedon the web browser.

Although omitted in FIG. 4 , it is assumed that the client PC 111 alsocomprises the same function module as the additional function module 420described previously.

Scan Profile

It is possible to set “folder distribution rule” and “file naming rule”,to be described later, for each of various scan workflows. Here, thescan workflow means a series of work to transmit data of a scanned imageobtained by scanning a document, such as a business form, to a specifictransmission destination (for example, storage server 130) under aspecific condition. The condition of each scan workflow and informationon the transmission destination are managed by a scan profile. It ispossible for a user to simply implement a desired scan workflow bycreating a scan profile in advance.

The procedure to create a scan profile is, for example, as follows.First, a user logs in to the MFP cooperative server 120 via the clientPC 111 and causes the display to make a transition from a main screen(not shown schematically) that is displayed after the login into a UIscreen as shown in FIG. 5 . FIG. 5 shows an example of a UI screen (inthe following, called “template selection screen”) showing a list oftemplates for creating a scan profile. On a template selection screen500, templates 501 a to 501 c exist. Here, for each type of business,the accounting template 501 a, the medical template 501 b, and the legaltemplate 501 c are shown. It may also be possible to prepare the typesof template for each use case, in addition to each type of business. orprepare for each task, or for each storage server. Alternatively, it mayalso be possible to enable a user to create a profile by customizing allsettings without using templates. In a case where a user presses down a“Create profile” button 502 in a desired template, a scan profilesetting screen (not shown schematically) is displayed. On the scanprofile setting screen, a user performs input for various items of theworkflow, such as the type of storage server, which is the transmissiondestination, the type of output file, the folder distribution rule, andthe file naming rule. In a case where a user having completed thenecessary input presses down a “Store” button (not shown schematically)within the scan profile setting screen, a scan profile in accordancewith input contents is created and stored in, for example, the HDD 214of the MFP 110. By the scan profile thus stored being displayed on aprofile execution screen (not shown schematically) of the MFP 110 and auser selecting a desired scan profile and performing a scan, forexample, it is possible to transmit the scanned image to the desiredstorage server 103 and store it therein.

Setting of Folder Distribution Rule

Following the above, the setting of a rule relating to distribution of afile to a storage destination folder in a scene in which a scanned imageof a document is filed and stored in the storage server 130 isexplained. In the present embodiment, explanation is given on theassumption that various settings including the setting of a folderdistribution rule are performed in the client PC 111. The control of thedisplay of various UI screens and the storage of a set rule, to bedescribed below, is implemented by the additional function module 420described previously comprised by the client PC 111. That is, it is alsopossible to perform the contents, to be described below, by the MFP 110comprising the additional function module 420.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a UI screen (in the following,called “folder distribution rule setting screen”) for a user to set arule relating to a file distribution destination (storage destinationfolder), which is displayed on a display (not shown schematically) ofthe client PC 111. A folder distribution rule setting screen 600 shownin FIG. 6 shows an initial display state and has five areas of a ruleediting area 601, a system token area 602, a delimiter token area 603,an automatic extraction token area 604, and a sample document area 605.Then, in the rule editing area 601, a token drop area 610 exists andfurther, at the bottom of the screen, a “Store” button 606 fordetermining and storing a set rule exists.

In the present specification, “token” means an item for a user todesignate a character string (including symbol) used in propertyinformation necessary at the time of storing a file in the storageserver 130, while taking the attribute thereof into consideration. Then,the token includes a general token (general item) corresponding to acharacter string with a predetermined attribute and a particular token(particular item) for a user to automatically extract a character stringcorresponding to a specific attribute that can be set arbitrarily by auser from within a document. A system token and a delimiter token, to bedescribed later, correspond to the general token and an automaticextraction token, to be described later, corresponds to the particulartoken. These tokens are represented as a UI element that is a target ofthe user operation, such as the drag operation and the drop operation,on various setting screens that appear in the following.

In the system token area 602, the delimiter token area 603, and theautomatic extraction token area 604, various tokens are displayed in alist. Then, in the rule editing area 601, a folder distribution rulecreated by using various tokens is displayed. Here, the folderdistribution rule includes information relating to the folder path ofthe scanned data distribution destination (storage destination folder)and the folder hierarchy structure and is set in advance by a user.

Setting of Token

It is possible for a user to select one of tokens displayed in thesystem token area 602, the delimiter token area 603, and the automaticextraction token area 604 by the drag operation and perform the dropoperation to drop the selected token in the token drop area 610. As aresult of that, a new folder is represented in a pseudo manner, whichincludes a character string corresponding to the token selected by thedrag operation as the folder name (folder path).

The system token area 602 is an area in which tokens are displayed,which take the environmental variable of a user, such as “display nameof login user”, “time”, and “date”, as the attribute value. Thedelimiter token area 603 is an area in which tokens are displayed, whichtake the delimiter (symbol), such as “underscore” and hyphen”, as theattribute value. The automatic extraction token area 604 is an area inwhich tokens are displayed, which take the character stringcorresponding to the attribute type in OCR results (recognized characterstring) of a scanned image as the attribute value. Details of theautomatic extraction token, such as the attribute type selectable in theautomatic extraction token, will be described later.

The information on the rule displayed in the rule editing area 601 istransmitted to the MFP cooperative server 120 in response to thepressing down of the “Store” button 606 and managed by the datamanagement unit 434. Further, in a case where the “Back” button ispressed down, the rule being displayed in the rule editing area 601 isdiscarded and the setting processing terminates.

Here, the storage destination folder distribution rule in the presentembodiment is reviewed. First, it is assumed that no restrictions areimposed particularly on the combination and order of tokens that can beset as the folder distribution rule. For example, it may also bepossible to create a rule that one folder name should consist of onlythe delimiter tokens in the delimiter token area 603, or it is alsopossible to create a rule that the same system token should be used.

FIG. 7 shows the state of the folder distribution rule setting screen600 in a case where a user drags and drops an arbitrary system tokenwithin the system token area 602 in the rule editing area 601.Specifically, FIG. 7 shows the state in a case where a system token 701among a plurality of system tokens displayed within the system tokenarea 602 is dropped in the token drop area 610, which takes “displayname of login user” as the attribute name. Turning to the rule editingarea 601 in FIG. 7 , a token 702 whose attribute name is “display nameof login user” is newly arranged at the position of the token drop area610 (see FIG. 6 ) at which a user has performed the drop operation andat the same time, new token drop areas 710 and 711 are generated. In thestate shown in FIG. 7 , in a case where a user selects one token fromthe token groups existing in the various token areas 602 to 604described above and drags and drops it in the token drop area 710 or711, a new token drop area is further generated (not shownschematically). Then, in a case where a user further drags and drops anarbitrary token in the newly generated token drop area, a token droparea is further generated. The state of the folder distribution rulesetting screen 600 after the operation such as this is performedrepeatedly is shown in FIG. 8 . Turning to the rule editing area 601 inFIG. 8 , two new tokens (a token 801 whose attribute name is “{space}”and a token 802 whose attribute name is “device name”) are added and atoken drop area 810 is further generated. In this case, the three tokens702, 801, and 802 are set to the folder name of the folder in the firsthierarchy (the uppermost hierarchy). In accordance with the example inFIG. 8 , the folder whose folder path is “(display name of login user)(device name)” is created as the folder in the uppermost hierarchy. Onthe other hand, also in a case where a user drags and drops onearbitrary token in the token drop area 711 existing in the secondhierarchy in the rule editing area 601 shown in FIG. 7 , a new tokendrop area is further generated. Turning to the rule editing area 601 inFIG. 8 , a token 803 of “date (year)” is added and two token drop areas811 and 812 are further generated. The token drop area 811 is used in acase where a new token is added to the folder in the second hierarchyfor which the use of the token 803 is already determined. Further, thetoken drop area 812 is used in a case where a first token is set to thefolder in the third hierarchy.

As is obvious from the explanation so far, the hierarchy of the folderthat uses the three tokens 702, 801, and 803 as the folder name isdifferent from the hierarchy of the folder that uses the token 803 asthe folder name. That is, in the folder structure, the folder that usesthe token 803 as the folder name exists in the lower layer of the folderthat uses the three tokens 702, 801, and 802 as the folder name. Evenfor the tokens set in the rule editing area 601 as described above, bythe drag operation, it is possible to change the arrangement byexchanging the tokens adjacent to each other, inserting a token betweentokens, and so on.

Deletion of Token

Following the above, a case is explained where a user deletes the tokenin each folder hierarchy, which is set as described above. In a casewhere a user performs the mouse-hover operation for one of the tokensbeing displayed in the rule editing area 601, a “x” button is displayedon the token (not shown schematically). It is possible for a user todelete the token by pressing down the “x” button.

Automatic Extraction Token

Following the above, the automatic extraction token is explained, whichis one of the features of the present embodiment. The attribute of theautomatic extraction token, which represents the type of attribute,changes in accordance with the type of template selected at the time ofthe scan profile creation described previously. For example, in theautomatic extraction token area 604 in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8 describedpreviously, eight tokens are displayed whose attribute names are“title”, “document creation date”, “document number”, “company name(issue destination)”, “person's name (issue destination)”, “company name(issuer)”, “person's name (issuer)”, and “amount”. These are theautomatic extraction tokens associated with the accounting templatetaking an estimate form, a bill and the like as a target. In a casewhere the legal template is selected, “client name”, “case number” andthe like are displayed and in a case where the medical template isselected, “patient's name”, “date of birth” and the like are displayedand in this manner, tokens having attribute names in accordance with theselected template are displayed.

Display of Sample Document

Next, the display of a sample document is explained, which is one of thefeatures of the present embodiment. The image of a sample document thatis displayed in the sample document area 605 also changes in accordancewith the template selected at the time of the scan profile creationdescribed previously. For example, in the sample document area 605 inFIG. 6 to FIG. 8 described previously, as an example of a sampledocument relating to accounting in a case where the accounting templateis selected, the image of “Estimate Form” is displayed. In a case wherethe legal template is selected, the image of “Judicial Document” inwhich a plaintiff, a defendant, and a judgment document are recorded isdisplayed and in a case where the medical template is selected, theimage of “Medical Sheet” in which a patient's name and a symptom aredescribed is displayed as the image of each sample document. Further,although not shown schematically on the folder distribution rule settingscreen 600 in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8 , it may also be possible to provide a“Switch” button at the bottom of the sample document so as to make itpossible to switch the image, for example, from “Estimate Form” to“Bill” by pressing down this button. Furthermore, although not shownschematically on the folder distribution rule setting screen 600 in FIG.6 to FIG. 8 , it may also be possible to provide an “Import” button atthe bottom of the sample document. It may also be possible to enable auser to upload the image of an arbitrary business form and the like anddisplay the image as a sample document by pressing down “Import” button.

Relationship Between Automatic Extraction Token and Sample Document

FIG. 9 shows the state of the folder distribution rule setting screen600 in a case where a user performs the mouse-hover operation for one ofa plurality of tokens displayed in the automatic extraction token 604.In the example in FIG. 9 , a character area 901 of “Kosugi Inc.” on thesample document is highlighted, which corresponds to the token of theattribute name “company name (issuer)” activated by a mouse hover. It ispossible to implement the display control such as this by creating andstoring in advance a table or the like in which the attribute name of anautomatic extraction token and the corresponding character area in theimage of the sample document are associated with each other and byreferring to the table or the like.

FIG. 10 shows the state of the folder distribution rule setting screen600 in a case where a user performs the mouse-hover operation for anarbitrary character area on the sample document. In the example in FIG.10 , the automatic extraction token whose attribute type is “title” ishighlighted, which corresponds to a character area 1001 activated by amouse hover of “Estimate Form” on the sample document. At this time,there may be a case where a token corresponding to the character areaactivated by a mouse hover does not exist in the automatic extractiontoken area 604. In this case, a user is notified of this by displaying,for example, a warning message. FIG. 11 shows the state of the folderdistribution rule setting screen 600 in a case where a user performs themouse-hover operation for a character area for which no correspondingautomatic extraction token exists. Here, for a character area 1101 of“cartridge” on the sample document, no corresponding automaticextraction token exists. Because of this, a warning dialog 1102 isdisplayed, which includes a message to the effect that the designatedarea cannot be extracted automatically because the character area 1101of “cartridge” is activated by a mouse hover. In the present embodiment,a “Create” button 1130 is provided within the warning dialog 1102 sothat it is made possible to create a manual extraction token (to bedescribed later) for extracting an arbitrary character string by manualarea designation of a user by pressing down this button. A “Cancel”button 1104 within the warning dialog 1102 is used at the time ofclosing the warning dialog 1102. It is also possible to implement thedisplay control of the warning dialog such as this by creating andstoring in advance a table or the like in which each of the attributetypes of automatic extraction tokens and the corresponding characterarea in the image of the sample document are associated with each otherand by referring the table or the like.

Manual Extraction Token

FIG. 12 shows the state of the folder distribution rule setting screen600 in a case where the “Create” button 1103 of the warning dialog 1102is pressed down by a user. In a token drop area 1201, a character stringof “Adding . . . ” is displayed. Further, in a text field 1202 that isdisplayed as a pop-up field in response to the pressing down of the“Create” button 1103, a character string of “item 1” is input. Thecharacter string input to the text field 1202 in this manner is set asthe attribute name of the token utilized for the creation of a folderpath by the pressing down of a “Store” button 1203 within the ruleediting area 601. A “Cancel” button 1204 is used in a case where thesetting of a manual extraction token is cancelled. FIG. 13 shows thestate of the folder distribution rule setting screen 600 after a manualextraction token is set by a user pressing down the “Store” button 1203.A token 1301 having the character string “item 1” input to theabove-described text filed 1202 as the attribute name is displayed as atoken for the folder in the first hierarchy within the rule editing area601. The setting method of a manual extraction token is not limited tothe example described above and for example, it may also be possible toenable the setting by selecting an arbitrary character string areawithin a preview pane 1601 on a property setting screen 1600 shown inFIG. 16 , to be described later.

Check of Set Folder Distribution Rule

FIG. 14 is a diagram explaining how a folder distribution rule createdand stored by a user via the folder distribution rule setting screen 600described previously is displayed on a main screen (not shownschematically). In the example shown in FIG. 14 , contents (structure offolder path) 1401 of the created and stored folder distribution rule anda sample 1402 of the folder path in accordance with the contents aredisplayed. Here, the structure 1401 of the folder path shown in FIG. 14corresponds to the contents “{display name of login user} {devicename}/date (year)” indicated in the rule editing area 601 on the folderdistribution rule setting screen 600 in FIG. 8 . Then, the contents ofthe sample 1402 of the folder path that is displayed are “/Taro Yamada17F south side device/2021” using the character string within the sampledocument being displayed in the sample document area 605. The slashincluded in the structure 1401 of the folder path and the sample 1402thereof represents a separation between folder hierarchies.

Setting of File Naming Rule

Following the above, the setting of a naming rule relating to a filename that is appended in a case where a scanned image or the like isfiled is explained. In the present embodiment, explanation is given bytaking a case as an example where the setting of a file naming rule isalso performed in the client PC 111. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing anexample of a UI screen (in the following, called “file naming rulesetting screen”) for a user to set a file naming rule, which isdisplayed on the display (not shown schematically) of the client PC 111.A file naming rule setting screen 1500 shown in FIG. 15 shows theinitial display state and has the same screen configuration as that ofthe folder distribution rule setting screen 600 described previously.That is, the file naming rule setting screen 1500 also has five areas ofa rule editing area 1501, a system token area 1502, a delimiter tokenarea 1503, an automatic extraction token area 1504, and a sampledocument area 1505. Then, in the rule editing area 1501, a token droparea 1507 exists and further, at the bottom on the screen, a “Store”button 1506 for determining and storing a set file naming rule exists.In the following, points different from those of the folder distributionrule setting screen 600 are explained mainly.

The creation of a file naming rule is also performed by arrangingvarious tokens displayed in the system token area 1502, the delimitertoken area 1503, and the automatic extraction token area 1504 by dragand drop. The file name does not have a hierarchy structure, andtherefore, even in a case where a new token is added to the rule editingarea 1501, a plurality of token drop areas is not displayed and thispoint is different from the folder distribution rule setting screen 600.

One or a plurality of tokens arranged in the rule editing area 1501 is acomponent or components of a single file name. That is, in a case wherea plurality of tokens is set, one file name is generated by connectingthe attribute value of each token.

Property Setting Check at the Time of Filing

Next, a flow of specific processing in the property setting at the timeof filing a scanned image and the like is explained. Here, the propertyrefers to a file name, a folder path, metadata and the like, which arenecessary for each piece of filing-target image data. For example, in acase where a certain document is scanned and filed and stored in thestorage server 130, a user sets necessary properties via a propertysetting screen on which the storage destination folder distribution ruleand the file naming rule set as described above are reflected.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a UI screen (in thefollowing, called “property setting screen”) for a user to set aproperty, which is displayed on the display (not shown schematically) ofthe client PC 111. The property setting screen 1600 shown in FIG. 16 isin the initial display state and has a 2-pane configuration of thepreview pane 1601 and a property pane 1602. Here, within the previewpane 1601, a processing-target scanned image of “Estimate Form” isdisplayed as a preview. In the preview pane 1601, it is possible todisplay any portion in the scanned image by scrolling and zooming thescanned image. The property pane 1602 is a pane for displaying andediting a property to be appended to a processing-target scanned image.Here, within the property pane 1602, a folder path display area 1603, afile name display area 1604, an attribute value input filed 1605corresponding to a folder path, and an attribute value input field 1606corresponding to a file name are displayed. Then, in the attribute valueinput field 1605, an attribute name 1609 and an attribute value 1608 ofan automatic extraction token and a cutout image 1607 corresponding tothe attribute value are displayed. In the folder path display area 1603,“/Estimate Form/2012 12” is displayed as a folder path and the displaysof the attribute values corresponding to the system tokens of “date(year)” and “date (month)” are omitted. The reason is that the attributename of a system token is fixed unlike that of an automatic extractiontoken and there is no possibility that the system makes an error, andtherefore, it is not necessary to cause a user to check them. However,it may also be possible to display an attribute value, a cutout image ofa corresponding character area and the like for a system token.

File Transmission Processing

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing in the PC 111 untila scanned image of a document is filed and transmitted to and stored inthe storage server 130. The execution of this flow is started by thedisplay control unit 435 of the PC 111 receiving user instructions toperform the property setting of a processing-target scanned imageobtained by the MFP 110 as a trigger. In the following, explanation isgiven by taking a case as an example where the scanned image of“Estimate Form” displayed within the preview pane 1601 on the propertysetting screen 1600 shown in FIG. 16 described previously is filed as aprocessing target. In the following explanation, a symbol “S” representsa step.

At S1701, information on a folder distribution rule for aprocessing-target scanned image is obtained, which is set in advance viathe folder distribution rule setting screen 600 described previously.Here, it is assumed that “‘title’ (automatic extraction token)/‘date(year)’ (system token) ‘date (month)” (system token)” is obtained as afolder distribution rule that is applied.

At S1702, information on a file naming rule for a processing-targetscanned image is obtained, which is set in advance via the file namingrule setting screen 1500 described previously. Here, it is assumed that“‘company name (issuer)’ (automatic extraction token) ‘underscore’(delimiter token) ‘document number’ (automatic extraction token)” isobtained as a file naming rule that is applied.

At S1703, for the system tokens included in the information obtained atS1701 and S1702, the character string is obtained, which is theattribute value thereof. Specifically, first, among the system tokensincluded in the folder distribution rule and the file naming rule bothobtained, a system token of interest is determined. Next, the characterstring corresponding to the environment variable of a user, whichcorresponds to the attribute name of the determined system token ofinterest, is obtained from the data management unit 434 of the MFPcooperative server 120. Here, in the obtained folder distribution rule,the two system tokens “date (year)” and “date (month)” are included. Onthe other hand, in the obtained file naming rule, no system token isincluded. Consequently, obtaining of the character string, which is theattribute value, is repeated twice and two character strings (forexample, character strings of “2022” and “4”) are obtained, whichcorrespond to “date (year)” and “date (month)” representing the date ofthe scan. Then, at S1704, whether or not all the system tokens includedin the folder distribution rule and the file naming rule both obtainedare processed is determined. In a case where all the system tokens areprocessed, the processing advances to S1705. On the other hand, in acase where there is an unprocessed system token, the processing returnsto S1703, and the next system token of interest is determined and theprocessing is continued. In a case where no system token is included ineach obtained rule, the processing at S1703 and S1704 is skipped and theprocessing advances to S1705. Unlike the automatic extraction token andthe delimiter token, the attribute value of the system token variesdynamically in accordance with the setting of the system. Because ofthis, it is necessary to update the corresponding character string(attribute value) of each system token each time the system settingchanges.

At S1705, for the automatic extraction tokens included in theinformation obtained at S1701 and S1702, the character string isobtained, which is the attribute value thereof. Specifically, first,among the automatic extraction tokens included in the folderdistribution rule and the file naming rule both obtained, an automaticextraction token of interest is determined. Next, the character stringcorresponding to the attribute type of the determined automaticextraction token of interest is extracted automatically from the scannedimage. For this automatic extraction, for example, machine learning isutilized. In the method that utilizes machine learning, a trained modelis obtained first by causing a model to learn a large number of testimages and character areas of each attribute type, which correspond tothe test images. Then, by inputting the processing-target scanned imageto the trained model, the character string corresponding to theautomatic extraction token of interest is specified and extracted. Here,one automatic extraction token is included in the obtained folderdistribution rule and two automatic extraction tokens are included inthe obtained file naming rule, and therefore, obtaining of the characterstring, which is the attribute value, is repeated three times. As aresult of that, for each automatic extraction token whose attribute nameis “title”, “company name (issuer)”, and “document number”, eachcharacter string of “Estimate Form”, “Kawasaki Inc.”, and “R12-3456” isextracted from the scanned image of “Estimate Form” within the previewpane 1601. Then, at S1706, whether or not all the automatic extractiontokens included in the folder distribution rule and the file naming ruleboth obtained are processed is determined. In a case where all theautomatic extraction tokens are processed, the processing advances toS1707. On the other hand, in a case where there is an unprocessedautomatic extraction token, the processing returns to S1705, and thenext automatic extraction token of interest is determined and theprocessing is continued. In a case where no automatic extraction tokenis included in each obtained rule, the processing at S1705 and S1706 isskipped and the processing advances to S1707.

At S1707, in accordance with the folder distribution rule obtained atS1701, a folder path is generated by using the character string of eachsystem token obtained at S1703 and the character string of eachautomatic extraction token obtained at S1705. At S1708 that follows, inaccordance with the file naming rule obtained at S1702, a file name isgenerated by using the character string of each system token obtained atS1703 and the character string of each automatic extraction tokenobtained at S1705. At the time of the generation at S1707 and S1708described above, in a case where a delimiter token is included in therule that is applied, the relevant delimiter, such as a period and aspace, is inserted. Further, in a case where the character stringcorresponding to the automatic extraction token is not extracted, afolder path or a file name is generated by using the attribute name ofthe target automatic extraction token as part of the folder path or thefile name, such as “{title}”. In a case of a manual extraction token,similarly, it may also be possible to generate a folder path or a filename by using the attribute name of the target manual extraction tokenby using part of the folder path or the file name, such as “{item 1}”.

At next S1709, the property setting screen described previously isdisplayed on the display (not shown schematically) of the client PC 111.FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing details of processing to display theproperty setting screen. In the following, detailed explanation is givenalong the flow in FIG. 18 by taking a case as an example where theproperty setting screen 1600 in FIG. 16 described previously isdisplayed.

At S1801, the folder path generated at S1707 is displayed in the folderpath display area 1603 on the property setting screen 1600. As describedpreviously, in the example in FIG. 16 , “/Estimate Form/202112” isdisplayed as the folder path. In this case, the portion of “EstimateForm” is the character string extracted as the attribute value of“title”, which is an automatic extraction token. Further, the portion of“202112”is the character string representing the date of execution ofthe scan, which is obtained by integrating the two character strings“2021” and “12” extracted as the attribute values of “date (year)” and“date (month)”, which are system tokens. In this case, in a case wherethe date (year/month/day) of execution of the scan changes, the figuresthat are allocated to these system tokens change each time the datechanges.

At S1802, whether or not an automatic extraction token is included inthe folder distribution rule obtained at S1701 is determined. In a casewhere an automatic extraction token is included, the processing advancesto S1803 and in a case where no automatic extraction token is included,the processing advances to S1807. In the example described above, theautomatic extraction token whose attribute name is “company name(issuer)” is included, and therefore, the processing advances to S1803.

At S1803, an attribute value input field for the automatic extractiontoken of interest among the automatic extraction tokens included withinthe folder distribution rule is displayed. In the example describedabove, one automatic extraction token is included in the folderdistribution rule, and therefore, the one attribute value input field isdisplayed (the attribute value input field 1605 in FIG. 16 ). In a casewhere a plurality of automatic extraction tokens is included, aplurality of attribute value input fields is displayed. In a case whereno automatic extraction token is included in the folder distributionrule, the attribute value input field is not displayed.

At S1804, the character string automatically extracted at S1705 isobtained and the character string is set as the attribute value in theattribute value input field displayed at S1803. In the example describedabove, in the attribute value display area 1608 located under theattribute name display area 1607, the character string “Estimate Form”is set and displayed as the attribute value of the attribute name“title”. At S1805 that follows, in the image display area within theattribute value input field in which the attribute value is set, acutout image corresponding to the set character string is displayed. Inthe example described above, in the image display area 1609 within theattribute value input field 1605, the cutout image is displayed, whichis obtained by cutting out the character area corresponding to thecharacter string “Estimate Form” from the scanned image being displayedin the preview pane 1601. In a case where the target character string isnot extracted automatically at S1705, the character string that shouldbe set as the attribute value at S1804 does not exist, and therefore, inthe attribute value display area 1608, for example, a character stringof “none” is displayed. Further, the corresponding image display area1609 also becomes blank. Then, at S1806, whether or not all theautomatic extraction tokens included in the folder distribution rule areprocessed is determined. In a case where all the automatic extractiontokens are processed, the processing advances to S1807. On the otherhand, in a case where there is an unprocessed automatic extractiontoken, the processing returns to S1803, and the next automaticextraction token of interest is determined and the processing iscontinued.

At next S1807, the file name generated at S1708 is displayed in the filename display area 1604 on the property setting screen 1600. As describedpreviously, in the example in FIG. 6 , “Kawasaki Inc._R12-3456.pdf” isdisplayed. In this case, the portion of “Kawasaki Inc.” is the characterstring automatically extracted as the attribute value of “company name(issuer)” and the portion of “R12-3456” is the character stringautomatically extracted as the attribute value of “document number” andboth the character strings are displayed with the delimiter “underscore”being sandwiched in between.

At S1808, whether or not an automatic extraction token is included inthe file naming rule obtained at S1702 is determined. In a case where anautomatic extraction token is included, the processing advances to S1809and in a case where no automatic extraction token is included, thisprocessing is exited. Here, as described above, the automatic extractiontokens whose attribute names are “company (issuer)” and “documentnumber” respectively are included, and therefore, the processingadvances to S1809.

At S1809, an attribute value input field for the automatic extractiontoken of interest among the automatic extraction tokens included in thefile naming rule is displayed. In the example described above, the twoautomatic extraction tokens are included in the file naming rule, andtherefore, two attribute value input fields (see attribute value inputfields 1606 a and 1606 b in FIG. 16 ) are displayed. In a case where noautomatic extraction token is included in the file naming rule, theattribute value input field is not displayed.

At S1810, the character string automatically extracted at S1705 isobtained and the character string is set as the attribute value in theattribute value input field displayed at S1809. In the example describedabove, in an attribute value display area 1611 a located under anattribute name display area 1610 a, the character string of “KawasakiInc.” is set and displayed as the attribute value of the attribute name“company name (issuer)”. Further, in an attribute value display area1611 b located under an attribute name display area 1610 b, thecharacter string of “R12-3456” is set and displayed as the attributevalue of the attribute name “document number”. At S1811 that follows, inthe image display area within the attribute value input filed in whichthe attribute value is set, a cutout image corresponding to the setcharacter string is displayed. In the example described above, in animage display area 1612 a within the attribute value input field 1606 a,the cutout image is displayed, which is obtained by cutting out thecharacter area of “Kawasaki Inc.” from the scanned image being displayedin the preview pane 1601. Further, in an image display area 1612 bwithin the attribute value input field 1606 b, the cutout image isdisplayed, which is obtained by cutting out the character area of“R12-3456” from the scanned image being displayed in the preview pane1601. In a case where no target character string is extractedautomatically at S1705, the character string that should be set as theattribute value at S1810 does not exist, and therefore, in the attributevalue display areas 1611 a and 1611 b, for example, a character stringof “none” is displayed. Further, the corresponding image display areas1612 a and 1612 b also become blank. Then, at S1812, whether or not allthe automatic extraction tokens included in the file naming rule areprocessed is determined. In a case where all the automatic extractiontoken are processed, this processing is exited. On the other hand, in acase where there is an unprocessed automatic extraction token, theprocessing returns to S1809, and the next automatic extraction token ofinterest is determined and the processing is continued.

The above is the contents of the processing to display the propertysetting screen. Explanation is returned to the flow in FIG. 17 .

The processing at S1710 is processing to check whether instructions totransmit to and store in the storage server 130 are given by a userhaving completed editing and check of the folder path and the file namefor the processing-target scanned image. In a case of the presentembodiment, on a condition that the pressing down of a “Transmit” button1612 within the property setting screen 1600 is detected, the processingadvances to S1711. Then, at S1711, transmission processing offiling-target scanned image data is performed. In the example describedabove, the scanned image data is transmitted to the storage server 130via the MFP cooperative server 120 as well as the information on thefolder path and the file name set on the property setting screen 1600.That is, the storage server access unit 433 of the MFP cooperativeserver 120 files the received scanned image data by appending adesignated file name and stores in the designated folder of the storageserver 130.

The above is the flow of the processing until a scanned image of adocument is filed and transmitted to and stored in the storage server130.

As above, in the present embodiment, at the time of creating a rule fora folder path and a file name, it is possible to use a common token(automatic extraction token, system token). Then, even in a case where acommon token is used, in the property pane 1602, the folder path and thefile name are displayed distinguished from each other.

Other Embodiments

Embodiment(s) of the present disclosure can also be realized by acomputer of a system or apparatus that reads out and executes computerexecutable instructions (e.g., one or more programs) recorded on astorage medium (which may also be referred to more fully as a‘non-transitory computer-readable storage medium’) to perform thefunctions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s) and/orthat includes one or more circuits (e.g., application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC)) for performing the functions of one or moreof the above-described embodiment(s), and by a method performed by thecomputer of the system or apparatus by, for example, reading out andexecuting the computer executable instructions from the storage mediumto perform the functions of one or more of the above-describedembodiment(s) and/or controlling the one or more circuits to perform thefunctions of one or more of the above-described embodiment(s). Thecomputer may comprise one or more processors (e.g., central processingunit (CPU), micro processing unit (MPU)) and may include a network ofseparate computers or separate processors to read out and execute thecomputer executable instructions. The computer executable instructionsmay be provided to the computer, for example, from a network or thestorage medium. The storage medium may include, for example, one or moreof a hard disk, a random-access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM),a storage of distributed computing systems, an optical disk (such as acompact disc (CD), digital versatile disc (DVD), or Blu-ray Disc (BD)™),a flash memory device, a memory card, and the like.

According to the present disclosure, it is made possible to set a folderdistribution rule and a file naming rule more simply at the time offiling and storing data of a scanned image of a document, a receivedfacsimile and the like.

While the present disclosure has been described with reference toexemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the disclosure is notlimited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of thefollowing claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as toencompass all such modifications and equivalent structures andfunctions.

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No.2022-070094, filed Apr. 21, 2022 which is hereby incorporated byreference wherein in its entirety.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing apparatus comprising:one or more memories storing instructions; and one or more processorsexecuting the instructions to: perform display control of a rule settingscreen for a user to set a rule relating to property information usedfor distributing a file of a document image into a folder, wherein onthe rule setting screen, at least a first area for editing the rule, asecond area displaying a plurality of items selectable by a user, and athird area displaying an image of a sample document exist, each of theplurality of items is an element for a user to set a character stringconfiguring the property information, the plurality of items includes: ageneral item corresponding to a character string with a predeterminedattribute; and a particular item for automatically extracting acharacter string from the document image, which corresponds to anattribute that a user can set arbitrarily, the rule is created by atleast one item selected from the second area by a user being arranged ata predetermined position in the first area, which is designated by theuser, and in the display control, in a case where the particular itembeing displayed in the second area is activated by a mouse hover, acharacter area in the image of the sample document being displayed inthe third area is highlighted, which corresponds to the particular itemactivated by the mouse hover.
 2. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein in the display control, in a case where aspecific character area within the image of the sample document beingdisplayed in the third area is activated by a mouse hover, theparticular item corresponding to the specific character area ishighlighted.
 3. The information processing apparatus according to claim2, wherein in the display control, in a case where the particular itemcorresponding to the specific character area activated by the mousehover does not exist in the second area, a notification to that effectis given.
 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,wherein in the display control, data in which an attribute name of theparticular item and a corresponding character area in the image of thesample document are associated with each other is referred to.
 5. Theinformation processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in thedisplay control, control is performed to: display a template selectionscreen for causing a user to select a desired template from among aplurality of specific templates in which the particular item and therule setting screen are associated with each other before displaying therule setting screen; and display the rule setting screen associated withthe template selected via the template selection screen.
 6. Theinformation processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein thedesignation by a user is implemented by performing an operation to dragan arbitrary item from the second area and an operation to drop the itemin the first area and the predetermined position in the first area is aposition prepared in advance for performing the drop operation.
 7. Theinformation processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein theproperty information is a folder path and the rule is a rule to specifyone or a plurality of character strings used for the folder path and ahierarchy structure of a folder.
 8. The information processing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the property information is a file nameand the rule is a rule to specify one or a plurality of characterstrings used for the file name.
 9. A control method of an informationprocessing apparatus, the control method comprising the step of:performing display control of a rule setting screen for a user to set arule relating to property information used for distributing a file of adocument image into a folder, wherein on the rule setting screen, atleast a first area for editing the rule, a second area displaying aplurality of items selectable by a user, and a third area displaying animage of a sample document exist, each of the plurality of items is anelement for a user to set a character string configuring the propertyinformation, the plurality of items includes: a general itemcorresponding to a character string with a predetermined attribute; anda particular item for automatically extracting a character string fromthe document image, which corresponds to an attribute that a user canset arbitrarily, the rule is created by at least one item selected fromthe second area by a user being arranged at a predetermined position inthe first area, which is designated by the user, and in the displaycontrol, in a case where the particular item being displayed in thesecond area is activated by a mouse hover, a character area in the imageof the sample document being displayed in the third area is highlighted,which corresponds to the particular item activated by the mouse hover.10. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing a programfor causing a computer to perform a control method of an informationprocessing apparatus, the control method comprising the step of:performing display control of a rule setting screen for a user to set arule relating to property information used for distributing a file of adocument image into a folder, wherein on the rule setting screen, atleast a first area for editing the rule, a second area displaying aplurality of items selectable by a user, and a third area displaying animage of a sample document exist, each of the plurality of items is anelement for a user to set a character string configuring the propertyinformation, the plurality of items includes: a general itemcorresponding to a character string with a predetermined attribute; anda particular item for automatically extracting a character string fromthe document image, which corresponds to an attribute that a user canset arbitrarily, the rule is created by at least one item selected fromthe second area by a user being arranged at a predetermined position inthe first area, which is designated by the user, and in the displaycontrol, in a case where the particular item being displayed in thesecond area is activated by a mouse hover, a character area in the imageof the sample document being displayed in the third area is highlighted,which corresponds to the particular item activated by the mouse hover.